


Define Normal

by totally4ryo



Series: Time After Time [8]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-29
Updated: 2013-12-29
Packaged: 2018-01-06 15:49:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1108673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/totally4ryo/pseuds/totally4ryo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jack and Ianto take their daughter to Cardiff's Winter Wonderland for some quality family time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Define Normal

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [Day One ](http://community.livejournal.com/redismycolour/1181.html) of [](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/)**redismycolour**

Title: Define Normal  
Author: [](http://totally4ryo.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://totally4ryo.livejournal.com/)**totally4ryo**  
Word Count: 2925  
Rating: G  
Characters/Pairings: Jack/Ianto, Gwen (mentioned), OC’s (Stephanie – Jack and Ianto’s daughter, Seleny Williams – Gwen’s daughter, future members of Torchwood).  
Spoilers: None, but this is post-TW series 2 and DW series 4.  
Disclaimer: I don’t own Jack and Ianto (heavy sigh), I’m pretty sure they own each other. I do know the BBC and RTD owns all things Torchwood.  
Warnings: Slash, MPREG, past character deaths, major fluff.  
Summary: Jack and Ianto take their daughter to Cardiff's Winter Wonderland for some quality family time.  
Notes: Written for [Day One ](http://community.livejournal.com/redismycolour/1181.html) of [](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/)**redismycolour**  
Set in the “Time After Time” 'verse (yes, that's an official 'verse of mine now) – which was written for [](http://horizonssing.livejournal.com/profile)[**horizonssing**](http://horizonssing.livejournal.com/) and has since developed into a 'verse of it's own. Reading the original story might help, but all you need to know is that this is set about 50 years after series 2, Ianto had died and eventually reunited with Jack and now they are raising a family. I decided for [](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://redismycolour.livejournal.com/)**redismycolour** I would try to base each challenge on fics I already had written.  
Massively unbeta, so please forgive all mistakes.

 

 

“Daddy! Taddy! Look!!!” three year old Stephanie Harkness-Jones exclaimed, pointing to the fair in the near distance.

The little girl walked between her daddies, each one holding a tiny hand. She merrily skipped along as they walked from the car park. She had stopped when they turned the corner and was able to see Cardiff’s Winter Wonderland in front of City Hall.

“Yes, we do see,” Ianto replied with a smile. He traded a look with Jack, being the winter faire was their destination. It had been a rough week for the little family. Rift activity kept Jack at the Hub and out around time, leaving little time for Stephanie.

To Ianto, it could not have been at a worse time, since not all that long ago, Jack had been staying away from home as much as possible for other reasons. Stephanie noticed and despite her age, caught on that her daddies were having relationship problems and was worried they did not love each other anymore, and maybe even her. She had inherited much from Ianto, including his psychic abilities and his brains. Being Jack was no slouch in brain department, there were times their daughter can be advanced for her age. When they were having their troubles, both men felt it was one of the times they wished she wasn’t so advanced. So with Jack seeing less of his family, Stephanie started to worry that there would be problems again. Jack tried to make time for her whenever he could, having her sit on his lap in his office while he went through the piles of paperwork in between calls taking him out of the Hub. Ianto would find himself in the Hub with Stephanie while the rest of the team were out chasing aliens or tracking down alien tech. Only if the team agreed that what they were looking for was alien yet harmless would Ianto be allowed to go, leaving Jack to stay at the Hub with Stephanie. Jack and Ianto tried their best to make sure their daughter did not feel like her happy home was about to come apart again.

So once the Rift Predictor forecasted some down time, Jack and Ianto immediately took the chance to spend quality family time. Among their plans was to take Stephanie to Winter Wonderland at City Hall. They planned to take her on the rides, and even go ice skating at the rink. The rest of the team assured the two fathers that they would handle everything and for them to enjoy their time off.

Jack squeezed Stephanie’s hand, looking down at her. “That’s where we’re going, sweet pea.”

The little girl stared up at Jack with wide silvery blue eyes. “Really?”

“Yes, really. Would you like that?”

Stephanie nodded vigorously, making her ponytails bounce up and down. She looked over to Ianto. “All of us?”

“Yes, all of us,” Ianto assured her.

Stephanie started to jump up and down in excitement. “YAY!”

Jack and Ianto laughed, trading another loving glance.

“And Daddy is going to teach you how to ice skate,” Ianto added.

“YAY!” the little girl repeated. After they took a few more steps, she looked back up at Ianto. “How come just Daddy?”

Jack chuckled, and decided to bend down and sweep his daughter into his arms, since she was slowing them down and Jack feared getting knocked over by other enthusiastic and older children who were overtaking them. Her little arms went around his neck, but she still looked at Ianto. Jack kissed her cheek. “Because of your little brother or sister.”

Stephanie looked thoughtful for a moment, one of her fingers in her mouth. “Won’t that make Taddy sad that he can’t join us?”

Ianto smiled and leaned close to quickly kiss the little girl’s nose. “Not at all, Stephanie. I’m going to enjoy watching you and Daddy have fun. And I’ll even take pictures.”

“Besides, we’ll all go on some of the rides together. Maybe you can go on them again with just Taddy so I could take some pictures,” Jack said.

“Okay. I just don’t want you or Taddy to be sad anymore.”

Jack cuddled his daughter closer, hugging her as they walked. “Never, sweet pea. Taddy and I are very very happy. So, are we going to have fun today?”

Stephanie nodded. “Yep! Just no Weebles.”

Ianto snorted. Their daughter spoke very well for her age, and could talk on forever with little or no encouragement. But there were some words she would also pronounce wrong. At times like this, when they were among others, Ianto was grateful that for Stephanie Weevils came out as Weebles. Usually anything Torchwood related would be mispronounced and while he usually corrected her with other words she stumbled over, he decided with Jack to allow her the mistakes for a while longer when it came to Torchwood terms that she picked up.

“Do you want to see Santa?” Ianto asked.

Stephanie nodded her head, smiling. “Yay Santa!”

“That’s a yes,” Jack said, laughing. They were at the entrance to the faire. “Look sweet pea. We’re here. What do you want to do first?”

“Santa! In case he leaves.”

Jack chuckled. “He’ll be here for a while, sweetheart.”

“What if he gets cold?”

“Santa’s from the North Pole,” Ianto explained. “This is probably warm for him.”

“Oh. I hope he doesn’t melt then.”

Jack and Ianto laughed, pausing to kiss their daughter.

 

 

They had a wonderful time, Ianto reflected as he stood by the gate looking out to the ice skating rink. He could see Jack tying on Stephanie’s skates. He had his camera ready. He was certain he would get a brilliant picture of Jack landing flat on his arse, being that Jack admitted the last time he went ice skating was over 25 years ago. It was at the same rink, during the same Winter Wonderland festival with Ianto. It was the last Christmas they had together, as Ianto was killed a few months later.

Ianto smiled, as he watched Jack hold Stephanie’s hands as she got used to being on the single blade skates. They were lucky to be given a second chance – he was lucky to have been given the chance to be reunited with Jack. And this time, he was pretty certain he would never leave Jack and Stephanie, or the unborn baby he was carrying. He was barely three months, but from the moment they found out he was pregnant, Jack went almost crazy in assuring no harm would come to Ianto. They both had suspicion that this time around, Ianto would come back from death, like Jack, but they also knew that the baby wouldn’t. After everything they had gone through for Ianto to finally be pregnant, Jack insisted on taking no chances. Ianto had to agree, even if it was frustrating to be stuck in the Hub most of the time. Then he remembered that Jack had put up with it while he was having Stephanie, and now it was his turn until their second child was born.

He could not feel frustrated that evening, as he watched Jack gingerly step on the ice, while still trying to exude an air of confidence as he tightly grasped the little girl’s hand. Ianto started to take pictures as Stephanie got on the ice for the first time, both her hands clinging to Jack’s, and then the excitement on her face when Jack slowly pushed off, pulling her along, making sure she stayed on her feet.

Ianto’s eyes were for his family only. He loved the moments when Jack was not Captain Jack Harkness, leader of Torchwood. At he watched the two on the ice, he only saw simply Jack Harkness-Jones, his partner and father to their daughter. Jack had even shed his usual style of clothing that he would sport around town while working, the style that had still stayed with him after all this time. Instead of his RAF greatcoat, he wore a leather bomber style jacket over a jumper and jeans. Since Stephanie was born, Ianto started to see the new style more, especially when Jack was away from Torchwood, doing things that any father would do with their children. As Ianto continued to watch, he found it amazing that the extremely handsome man with a carefree smile teaching his beautiful toddler how to skate was the man who saved Cardiff from alien destruction so many times even Ianto lost count without consulting files.

They had saved ice skating for last, knowing Stephanie would be getting tired soon after. Before that, they had gone on the ferris wheel and carousel, along with the other rides. They had gone from booth to booth. Ianto looked down at the big stuffed purple alien that Jack had won for Stephanie, which the little girl picked out her prize. Stephanie had sat on Santa’s lap, telling the jolly fellow what she wanted for Christmas. They decided it was important for her to believe in Santa Claus, because they knew of all the worse things that others did not believe in but existed in their world.

Ianto found himself remembering a time from long ago. It was the first time they had gone to the festival. The evening before they were chasing Weevils through the empty grounds, being it was well after hours. The next evening, when Jack sent everyone home, he asked if Ianto wanted to go out for a while, but kept the destination a surprise until they got there. They went on the ferris wheel and shared a kiss while on the top, overlooking Cardiff, and went ice skating. Ianto’s skating experience was more recent than Jack’s, but like the other man was proving now with their daughter, it only took Jack a few minutes to get his footing and soon joined Ianto as they gracefully skated around the rink. They decided to make it back at least once a year since then, and as the years went by, they sometimes found themselves with Seleny as a child, offering to take Gwen’s daughter with them, giving Gwen and Rhys a quiet evening together. A few years later, Seleny’s brother would join them. Ianto remembered those times out with Gwen’s children were delightful and he wondered why they did not consider having children then.

He started to laugh as Jack finally went down on his arse, taking Stephanie with him. The little girl managed a soft landing as she fell on her father. Jack hugged her, both laughing. No harm done, lots of laughs to be had. Ianto took a few more pictures. Ianto never had any interest in scrapbooking until Jack was pregnant. Then the Archivist in him, along with his pride as a father combined into his latest off-duty hobby. Stephanie loved to help him, and sometimes they would pull Jack in on the fun. He maintained two sets of scrapbooks – one set for those associated with Torchwood and knew everything about them, and another which he considered safe for Stephanie when she got older and would take to school to show her schoolmates and teachers. To Ianto, it also assured him that while their lives were extraordinary, it can also be normal at times. He enjoyed the normal, those times when they were just a family. Even if they managed to achieve ‘normal’ by abnormal ways – such as Jack giving birth to Stephanie, and now Ianto was pregnant with their second child.

He was not showing yet, and decided to enjoy the time he had left to go out and about with Jack and Stephanie. Seleny did assure him that he would not always be stuck in the house or the Hub because of the perception filter she designed. It worked for Jack, but it was limited in how long it would work. At least it gave him some relief to take walks along the Quay with Ianto, and to go shopping for short times. Seleny claimed she managed to make it work for longer periods of time, but it was still untested on its limits and they did not want to take chances. For now, he was enjoying being able to be outside without the aid of perception filters, while still knowing there was a new life growing inside him.

Finally Jack and Stephanie were joining him. Stephanie was excited and hyper, but both men knew their daughter enough to know when the excitement wore off, she would be falling asleep. They decided to go to the Ice Café for something to eat and then head home.

Stephanie was starting to yawn as they finished their meal, and Jack found himself carrying her as they made their way across the grounds. Ianto offered if Jack wanted to sit with Stephanie near the entrance, while he went the few blocks to the car park and got the car, but Jack assured him that he would be fine carrying the near sleeping child.

“She’s still easier to carry this way than those last couple of months before she was born,” Jack joked as they made their way past the carousel.

Jack ended up doing a double take at the carousel, blinking. “Ianto,” he muttered.

They had to wait until the carousel made a full round before Ianto saw what Jack had noticed. “Are you kidding me?” he muttered.

“Now that’s a new one. Do you think you can take Stephanie and head out of here while I deal with this?”

“On your own? Jack, you don’t even have your gun!” Ianto protested.

“What do you want me to do? Let the Weevil ride the carousel until it gets bored? Why the hell doesn’t anyone notice?” Jack was frowning as he handed Ianto their daughter.

“Weeble?” Stephanie asked sleepily, trying to peer where her daddies’ attention was.

Jack had his arm lifted and was pushing buttons on his wrist strap that until then had been hidden under the sleeve of his jumper and jacket. “I’m going to send a message to whoever is on duty to join me,” he assured Ianto. “You take Stephanie home, and I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

“Both you and Ianto are going home with Stephanie,” a new but familiar voice came from behind them. Both men turned to find Allan behind them. “We’ll handle this.”

Seleny stepped out from behind Allan. “We did say we’ll handle things tonight, didn’t we, Uncle Jack? We already got calls of someone in a mask going on the ferris wheel and decided to take a trip out to take a better look. Now scat, go home, put your daughter to sleep and do whatever it is you two do after Stephanie is asleep.” She winked at Jack and Ianto.

Ianto gave the two team members a grateful smile. “Be careful,” he stated.

“Normal run for us. What’s a Weevil on a merry-go-round?” Seleny assured him. “Don’t worry about us, Uncle Ianto.”

“What’s a Weevil on a merry-go-round?” Jack repeated incredulously. “Damn unusual, that’s what.”

Ianto lifted his camera and took a picture. “Definitely one for the private scrapbooks,” he agreed.

“Daddy said a bad word,” Stephanie muttered. “Aunt Seleny!” She reached her arms out.

“Not now, baby. Aunt Seleny needs to work with Uncle Allan,” Ianto said.

Seleny quickly kissed the little girl. “Yup. But tomorrow morning, you can go with me while I get everyone breakfast. Okay?”

“Yay! Bye Aunt Seleny. Hi Uncle Allan. Bye Uncle Allan.”

Allan patted the toddler on her head, smiling. “Hello and good night, young lady. Now tell your daddies you want to go home now.”

“Don’t wanna go home now….”

Jack chuckled, taking her back from Ianto. He preferred Ianto doing less carrying of heavy objects, including their daughter, even if she was not hard to handle. He was more worried about straining Ianto’s system and it causing a miscarriage. “I know, sweet pea. We’ll try to come back again. Okay? Now let them go to work, while we go home for story time.”

“Yay story time!” Stephanie crowed happily.

“You two be careful and give me a call when you have it secured in a cell,” Jack instructed to Seleny and Allan.

“Will do, Captain,” Allan assured him. “Talk to you in a bit. Let’s go, Seleny. As long as its not threatening anyone, we’ll follow it until we can get it in a less crowed area before capturing.”

“Sound idea,” Ianto agreed. “Good night.”

Seleny and Allan headed off into the crowd toward the carousel, while Ianto lead Jack and Stephanie toward the exit.

Jack shook his head. “Still the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Ianto laughed. “I agree, but at least it was nice enough not to ruin our delightful evening.”

“Thank goodness for that. And for a wonderful team quick to handle anything,” Jack agreed.

Stephanie lifted her head. “Can I see the Weeble tomorrow?”

“Maybe, sweet pea,” Jack replied. “But right now, it’s time for us to go home and get you ready for bed. Did you have fun?”

“Yep! Lots and lots of fun.”

“Good,” Ianto said, smiling.

“I love you, Daddy and Taddy.”

“We love you too, sweet pea,” Ianto said, as Jack kissed her head.

Together they left the grounds and headed back toward the car park, both lost in their own thoughts. Ianto was certain Jack was thinking the same thing.

He was once again amazed at how they were still able to maintain normal when life for them was far from it.


End file.
